The Story Behind the Story with author Doug Dolan of Moncton, NB, Canada.

 

Let’s welcome Doug to the Scribbler.

I had the pleasure meeting him at the Turner's Christmas craft fair and he kindly accepted my invitation to be our guest this week.

Read on my friends.

 

         Doug Dolan was born and raised in the small village of Nelson, beside the magnificent Miramichi River in North-East New Brunswick. Doug is a seventy-year-old novice writer. He has self-published “Stories From the River” a memoir profiling his struggle to find his way through a painful gay labyrinth at a time when it was best to keep such a sexual orientation to oneself. A wide variety of readers has positively reviewed it. He recently completed the historical fiction. “The Mill” It follows the Burchill family of Miramichi over their 140-year dynasty in the lumber industry. He is working on an anthology of Christmas-themed stories to be released in 2025. He has recently completed a novella looking at the murders of two Moncton police officers in 1974. It offers a unique look at the effects their deaths had on one of their own. Doug lives with his husband in Moncton, N.B. 

 

Title: The Mill

 

Synopsis: 

                The Mill follows four generations of the Burchill Family from 1840 through the 1970’s. Young George, his siblings and parents, sail from Ireland, up the Miramichi River to start a new life. At six years old, he sees only possibilities. In his lifetime of grit and determination he makes them real.

John Percival, his son, becomes the youngest person elected to the provincial legislature. Later in life, he displays his keen negotiation skills as other mills collapse along the river

George Percival, the heir to a derelict mill, emerges as the risk tolerant, persistent Industrialist who struggles to keep the lumber industry alive during a decades long depression. A successful businessman with an outgoing personality, he never forgets his roots and the community around him.

John inherits his father’s irrepressible optimism. His secure childhood allows the seeds of curiosity, and innovativeness to germinate. He emerges as the man who creates a new era in forestry for Eastern North America.

The workers at the Burchill mills integrated their home - grown skills to keep the plants working.

The employers and employees kept a struggling enterprise alive for over 130 years. This story captures the characters, many of them colorful, who made it happen.

The Story Behind the Story:  

As a young person growing up in a small community, I knew of the Burchills as a main employer. As I grew up, I learned something of their history spread over a century and a half. Through the generosity of a family member, I was given access to personal records and manuscripts that detailed the sacrifices and personal struggles to keep a fading industry alive. I became fascinated with a succession of entrepreneurs and their unique personalities.

Website: Please go HERE.

A question before you go, Doug:

Scribbler: Where is your favourite spot to write? Are you messy or neat?

Doug: I admit to being a bit different. I write my stories on a recliner in our Living Room. Initially I cut an odd figure curled up in a fetal position pecking with one finger (three on a good day) on my laptop. I recently upgraded to a fancy lap desk when my aging back acted up. I have to be neat with the little space and a stiff back.



An Excerpt from “The Mill”

“…In a video interview with his son, Derek, John shared the small victories and many setbacks in setting up and operating a softwood plywood mill in eastern North America. He suddenly pivots and says, almost casually, "We just got things into position, showed a little profit and damned if it (the mill) didn't burn down. " The state-of-the-art plant was opened one year to the day after the fire. Retelling the story in the video interview, John quips, "My advice is not to build a plywood mill," followed by a hearty laugh. John saw, that Burchill lumber and other sawmills were soon to become a relic of the past. It did continue for a short time after the plywood mill found its legs. It was not easy for him or his father, to let go of this integral part of their lives. Some aspects of its operation had been knit into the fabric of the community.”

I look forward to reading your story, Doug. Thank you for being our guest this week. We wish you continued success with your writing.

And a Special Thank You to al our visitors and readers.

Feel free to leave a comment below.